Hard disagree. Apple powers search with Google because Google pays them. Google pays them because they can show ads and scarf down user data. I don't want my devices' ability to do certain tasks controlled by the highest bidder for my attention and data.
Gemini hasn't even been "the best" for a year. Google's quick answers AI is the most laughably bad high-exposure model out there. In six months, Anthropic or OpenAI or any other provider might have a model or models that are exceedingly good for the use cases that Apple cares about.
Hell, Meta or Microsoft might surprise us and make a really robust model that uses very little in the way of resources and battery (arguably, MS has in the past and will do it again), and on-device compute will be the best option.
There's no best option right now. And if you're not aiming for short term ROI on AI products, there's no reason to make commitments that you might regret in a quarter or two.
Gemini hasn't even been "the best" for a year. Google's quick answers AI is the most laughably bad high-exposure model out there. In six months, Anthropic or OpenAI or any other provider might have a model or models that are exceedingly good for the use cases that Apple cares about.
Hell, Meta or Microsoft might surprise us and make a really robust model that uses very little in the way of resources and battery (arguably, MS has in the past and will do it again), and on-device compute will be the best option.
There's no best option right now. And if you're not aiming for short term ROI on AI products, there's no reason to make commitments that you might regret in a quarter or two.